‘Oil firms must clean up spills in Niger Delta’

Environmental degradation arising from crude oil exploration in the Niger Delta region has remained an issue. An environmentalist, Valentine Opone examines these issues, reports JOSEPH ESHANOKPE.

Erosion is a major challenge confronting the Southeastern part of the country.

An Environmental Specialist Valentine Ottis Opone said the problem could be solved through proper understanding.

He said: “We must first understand the problem. Erosion is the geological process in which the earth’s surface is worn by natural forces such as water, wind and waves. It breaks down rocks, mountains and land surfaces, which are carried away by wind, rain or rivers. Even the smaller particles add to the erosion as they move along and pound against exposed earth.”

Opone, who is also a member of the National Registry of Environmental Professionals, United States (US), said in agriculture, erosion destroys topsoil, which is high in organic matter and fertility.

Topsoil is relocated. Thus, soil erosion reduces crop land productivity and contributes to pollution of adjacent water courses, he added.

“Indeed, soil erosion is not peculiar to the southeast or other parts of the country. It is a common global environmental problem and undermines sustainable development in various economies and societies,” he said.

Why is it predominant in the Southeast?

He said when sheet erosion is neglected, fluvial erosion and mass wasting, acting singly or in combination, washes away the top soil and once a sandstone is exposed, it disaggregates easily leading to gullying. At a stage, the erosion becomes intractable and so rapid that control measures become too expensive and most times overwhelming and erosion sites abandoned.

Opone explained that the formation of gullies has become one of the greatest environmental disasters facing many towns and villages in the south. This region is fast becoming hazardous for human habitation. Hundreds of people are affected yearly in towns and villages and thus have to be relocated. Yet, the rate of increase in gully erosion has continued unabated without a permanent solution.

The economic cost of gully erosion in the South is devastating. It leads to great losses of land every year. In addition, highways are ruined due to gullies, leading to numerous vehicle accidents and deaths.

Although gullies are initiated by natural cracks in the earth, most of them in the Southeast are not natural and can be averted. Most of the causes are traceable to bad management practices, such as roads without proper drainage or catchments pits, unguided cultivation that cause flooding, indiscriminate channelling of flood water and others.

The government should invest in funding huge engineering projects to curb the erosion menace. The government has done little to curb this menace. It should ensure that soil degradation should be of major concern to it. Experts once predicted that the southeast stands the risk of losing most of its arable soil to erosion, if urgent attention is not given to mitigate it.

What are the solutions? The most effective known method for erosion prevention is to increase vegetative cover on the land, which prevent both wind and water erosion. Terracing is an extremely effective means of erosion control, which has been practiced for thousands of years. Windbreaks (also called shelterbelts) are rows of trees and shrubs that are planted along the edges of agricultural fields, to shield the fields against winds. Traditional planting methods, such as mixed-cropping (instead of mono cropping) and crop rotation, have also been shown to significantly reduce erosion rates.

Over the years, the people of the area most affected by this menace devised means of controlling it by applying, such anti-erosion measures such as digging of catchments pits, contour-waling, tree planting etc. These efforts proved to be of little effect and the problem continued unabated. Reasons for failure were, among others, inadequacy and unsuitability of methods used and, most importantly, the intractability of the problem. Afforestation in the areas is more susceptible to gully formation; and planting of local cover crops, such as leguminous plants.

However, small scale activities that require low technology input can be undertaken. Immediate control measures should be encouraged and practised. Reduction of surface runoff from impervious surfaces; drainage of surface runoff- this include the establishment of interception, division and primary (trunk) drains and the construction of interception ponds; planting of grasses on available favourable surface to reduce the amount of bare soils exposed to the erosive force of the rains and to control erosion.

On oil spill management, he said oil spillage is a common occurrence in the Niger Delta and that it occurs due to some reasons. They include corrosion of pipelines and tankers, sabotage and oil production operations. There is inadequate or non-functional production equipment. But the largest contributor to the oil spill is the rupturing of production infrastructure or the leaking of production infrastructure as a result of ‘very old and lack of regular inspection and maintenance.

‘’One reason corrosion accounts for a high percentage of oil spills is that as a result of the oil fields in the Niger Delta, there is an extensive network of pipelines between the fields, as well as numerous small networks of flowlines – the narrow diameter pipes that carry oil from wellheads to flow stations-allowing many opportunities for leaks.

‘’Sabotage is done by what is popularly called bunkering. It is a situation where saboteurs attempt to tap the pipeline. In the process, sometimes the pipeline is damaged or destroyed. Sabotage and theft through oil siphoning has become a major issue in the Niger Delta, contributing to further environmental degradation.’’

He speaks on the oil spillage impact on the ecosystem. He said: “Spills destroy crops and aquaculture through the contamination of the groundwater and soils. The consumption of dissolved oxygen by bacteria feeding on the spilled hydrocarbons also contributes to the death of fish.

“In agricultural communities, often a year’s supply of food can be destroyed immediately. Because of the careless nature of oil operations in the region, the environment is becoming inhabitable. People affected by it complain of health issues, including breathing and skin diseases. Many of them have lost such rights as access to food, clean water and good jobs.

“The Niger Delta is one of the world’s most important wetland and coastal marine ecosystems and has a population of 31 million. Oil was discovered in the area in 1958. Since then, there have been many oil spills. with communities located around oil installations mostly affected. The Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) estimated that 1.89million barrels of crude oil were lost between 1976 and 1996, out of 2.4million barrels spilled in 4,835 incidents.

“The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in a report states that there were 6,817 oil spills between 1976 and 2001, accounting for a loss of three million barrels of oil. Out of these, 70 per cent was not recovered.

How do we manage oil spill? He said: “There may never be a solution until the people who are found are sanctioned. The first objective in finding a permanent solution should be to clean up every inch of the land and every drop of oil that has been spilled in the last 50 years. A thorough and planned clean up will provide immediate employment for thousands of affected youths that are taking up arms, kidnapping and disrupting the lives of the people of the Niger Delta. The government must embark on immediate massive public works for road construction, among others.

“The cause of the unrest in the Niger Delta is poverty and exploitation. Nigeria must formulate a policy that changes its oil and gas industry from extractive to domestication and local processing.

“As total clean up is planned, the process of massive engagement of youthful and teachable hands should top the agenda of the government. For example, the Local Content Act and the PIB. These laudable ideas

“From the government, if implemented, as intended will ensure that the locals who own properties or infrastructure around oil exploration zones shall be adequately compensated and relocated while the youth are also engaged. Similarly, with the evolvement of sophisticated human capital development in the Niger Delta, more support companies will be formed and encouraged, ultimately, to reduce further the state of idle mindedness which has also been largely traced to oil theft and sabotage.

The administration of President Goodluck Jonathan has done so well for the oil rich zone, the onus is on the industry captains to follow the same procedure in tandem with environmental methodologies in ensuring that the total environment is safe and free of menace.

Urbanisation problem

Urban development or urbanisation means the increasing number of people living in the urban areas. It leads to growth. The UN said half of the world’s population would live in urban areas at the end of 2008. By 2050, it said 64.1 per cent and 85.9 per cent of the developing and developed world will be urbanised.

Urbanisation is linked to modernisation and industrialisation. It is not merely a modern phenomenon, but a transformation of human social roots on a global scale. It has some effects. As cities develop, there fewer or no jobs, and as a result, many cannot afford housing in cities and have to dwell in slums. That is why urbanisation is often seen as a negative trend. But it also has many advantages. There are opportunities of proximity and diversity. For example, cities have more markets than the rural areas.

Impact on shelter

There is an upsurge of people in city centres. The increase in housing deficit arises from unemployment. The growth of cities have been accompanied by urban sprawl, environmental expansion pollution, deterioration in infrastructure and urban decay.

What the government can do to address the situation

Urban development is an important issue for the government. The federal and state governments should invest more resources in urban areas through, for instance, transport. They should engage in building capacity, knowledge, and skills in the urban areas.